NHL Player News

Ersson turned aside six of eight shots after replacing Dan Vladar (undisclosed) in the first period Wednesday, taking the loss as the Flyers fell 5-2 to the Sabres.

It was a rough night for Philadelphia's defense overall, and Ersson got stuck with his third straight loss when Jack Quinn's tally early in the second period proved to be the game-winner. The 26-year-old netminder has only one win in his last eight outings, going 1-5-2 with a 3.75 GAA and .840 save percentage over that stretch, but he'll likely take over as the Flyers' No. 1 option in the crease for as long as Vladar is sidelined.

Hughes recorded two assists, including one on the power play, in Wednesday's 3-2 overtime win over Seattle.

The 22-year-old blueliner had a hand in two Nico Hischier tallies, including the overtime winner. Hughes has three two-point efforts in the last eight games, and on the season, he's contributed five goals and 26 points in 47 contests, putting him on pace to top 40 points for a third straight year.

Head coach Ryan Warsofsky said that Smith (upper body) will not play Thursday in Washington, but he remains a possibility to play Friday in Detroit, per Tom Gulitti of NHL.com.

Smith will miss his 13th consecutive game after he was injured Dec. 13 in Pittsburgh. Smith has 12 goals and 29 points in 33 games and could see action alongside Macklin Celebrini upon his return.

Swayman will guard the home crease versus Seattle on Thursday, Scott McLaughlin of WEEI reports.

Swayman was perfect in his last start Tuesday, turning aside all 24 shots in a 3-0 win over the upstart Red Wings. Swayman is 18-11-2 with a 2.79 GAA and a .904 save percentage over 32 appearances in 2025-26. The Kraken are 25th in NHL scoring this season, generating 2.76 goals per game.

Brink (upper body) was placed on injured reserve Thursday, retroactive to Jan. 6, Jackie Spiegel of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Brink has missed the last four games due to his upper-body injury, and he'll land on injured reserve after goaltender Aleksei Kolosov was called up Thursday. It's not yet clear when Brink will be able to return to game action, but Nicolas Deslauriers and Denver Barkey are candidates to see an uptick in playing time in his absence.

Hughes notched two assists, one on the power play, in Wednesday's 3-2 overtime win over the Kraken.

The 24-year-old center hasn't found the back of the net himself in 11 straight games, but he's hardly been unproductive during that time. Hughes has gotten onto the scoresheet in four straight contests and six of the last eight while racking up nine helpers, including four on the power play.

Hischier scored two goals, one on the power play and the other the overtime winner, in Wednesday's 3-2 victory over the Kraken.

Jack Hughes sprung the Devils' captain for a breakaway in the extra frame, and Hischier was able to slide a backhand under Philipp Grubauer's arm to end the night. It was Hischier's second multi-goal performance of the season, and over the last 13 games he's collected five goals and 11 points, including three goals and two assists with the man advantage.

Markstrom stopped 15 shots in Wednesday's 3-2 overtime win over the Kraken.

The veteran netminder wasn't busy, but he made some big saves when necessary, including one on Vince Dunn in overtime that led directly to Nico Hischier's game-winner on the counter-attack. Markstrom has allowed more than three goals in an outing only once since the beginning of December, although it was a nine-goal disaster against the Isles on Jan. 6, and he's won three of his last four starts to push his record on the season to 12-10-1 with a 3.34 GAA and .879 save percentage.

Skinner will be between the home pipes versus the Flyers on Thursday, per Penguins' studio host Dan Potash.

Skinner has played well since his trade from Edmonton in December, going 3-4-0 with a 2.34 GAA and an .899 save percentage. Overall, the 27-year-old netminder is 14-12-4 with a pair of shutouts, a 2.71 GAA and an .893 save percentage across 30 appearances with Pittsburgh and Edmonton. The Flyers are 23rd in NHL scoring, tallying 2.89 goals per game.

Severson (illness) is available for Thursday's game against the Canucks, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.

Severson missed Tuesday's game against Calgary due to an illness, but he'll be back in action following a minimal absence. Across his last 11 appearances, he's recorded a goal, seven assists, 16 blocked shots, 10 PIM and four hits while averaging 20:55 of ice time.